08 Oct Steven Paul Jobs 1955 – 2011
I haven’t been writing very much lately, we are just too damned busy and nothing really notable (in my opinion) has been happening in the world of technology. However, today is a bit different and I was saddened by the loss of Steve Jobs who proved (as many others have before him) that money and success cannot guarantee a long life.
I do not currently own and have actually never owned a single Apple product. I am basically a Microsoft guy. Not always the prettiest technology, but it very much suits my needs. That being said, I have deep appreciation for the contributions of Steven Paul Jobs and his exceptional vision.
I struggle every day to try to avoid being swallowed by technology (though I consider myself a technologist). My clients, associates, friends, and family are important, but I have no desire for them to chase me down via email or text when I am trying to “balance” my ridiculous work habits by stepping away from my PC. Enough of these musings, let’s get back to Steve Jobs…
Steve Jobs was adopted just after birth and his adopted father was a machinist (just like my dad, but the similarities end there). In eight grade has was in intern for Bill Hewlett (founder of Hewlett-Packard). He was a college dropout. Eventually he returned to the tech world and worked for Atari and HP before teaming up with Wozniak to create the first personal computer.
I contend that if Jobs and Wozniak had failed, someone else would have come along and accomplished the same thing. In fact there were many parallel efforts at that time, but Jobs and Wozniak beat them to the punch in 1976. The amazing fact is that it would be five years before a serious competitor appearred on the scene (IBM). So despite my contention, they certainly accelerated the process.
Steve Jobs was a micro manager but this was offset by his ability to identify and surround himself with people who could execute his visions. Despite this gift there were still just as many failures as they were successes. However, when his products were successful, they typically redefined the tech marketplace. If I had to pick one man who was responsible for the greatest number of advances in the “new computer age”, it would certainly be him…
There is so much that could be said about him and his life, but the thing that strikes me the most is the elegance and beauty he imparted to the crude technologies of our time. I freely admit that the Microsoft OS is at best utilitarian and at worst downright clunky. The Apple world is all about the user experience and the realization of the joys of personal computing.
Without Steve Jobs and those who he enabled and inspired, there might not be a Facebook or Twitter and the world would still be quite large. Technology has made the world much smaller. Maybe someday there will be no wars because these technologies will serve to connect the myriad of cultures and make us realize that we are not so different. We will all come to understand that our dreams are shared by those who speak different languages and live in different lands.
As Robert Oppenheimer (instrumental in the creation of the atom bomb) had certainly become death, the destroyer of worlds (his own words), Steven Paul Jobs contribution to this world is life and someday historians will look back at this time as the turning point in the brief human history where we began to realize our full potential as a species.
What wonderful creatures we are. What a stark contrast. In one breath we are the instruments of violence, death, and destruction, yet in the next we are capable of creating amazing beauty and showing incredible compassion.
Thanks go out to Steve Jobs and all those who embrace technology with the hope that they are making the world a better place…